It might not have counted toward their record, but the University of Memphis men's basketball team defended home court Friday against the Buccaneers of Christian Brothers University in an exhibition game at the FedExForum.
The Tigers collected the 92-63 win and exhausted the bench, giving fans and coaches a chance to see the caliber of the 2013-14 roster.
Following the game, head U of M coach Josh Pastner said his team still had a lot of work to do and credited CBU for their talent level.
"Anytime you get a win it is good," he said. "That's a well-coached basketball team, Christian Brothers. Coach (Mike Nienaber) is close to getting 500 wins and when you are getting close to 500 wins, that's unbelievable. I thought there were some positives. Obviously, I thought our press was good. It kind of wore them down in the second half, but we gotta make free throws. We gotta make three-point shots, and we're a good shooting team. It is just going to be within time, we gotta keep working at it."
Memphis was 52.1 percent in field goal attempts, 20 percent in three-point shooting and 57.7 percent from the free throw line. CBU only shot 35.5 percent from the two-point range but slightly edged out Memphis from the arch, shooting 26.3 percent and 63.6 percent from the charity stripe.
The Tigers pushed the tempo throughout the game but kept things uncomfortably close at times during the first half, heading into the locker room with a 12-point lead. After the brief halftime break, the Tigers continued to chip away any rust they had accrued in the off-season, stepping off the court a bit shinier.
The U of M had four players in the double digits. Leading the Tigers was senior transfer Michael Dixon Jr., who had 18 points on the night. CBU's redshirt sophomore Drew Hildreth was the only player to match Dixon's 18 and the lone Buccaneer to reach into double digits.
Dixon might be new to the Bluff City, but his veteran leadership was evident throughout the game. After Friday's win, the Tiger said leadership is one of the senior roles he takes very seriously.
"I like to talk and communicate and be out there and have my teammates' backs," he said. "I think that is something coach Pastner recruited me here and wanted me to do was be a leader, communicate and get everybody in the right spots."
Freshman Dominic Woodson was the next point leader for the U of M. The big man shot a perfect seven out of seven in the field goal category, adding 14 points.
Pastner said the young player demonstrated tremendous restraint during the game when CBU's Sidy Sall collected a technical foul after bouncing the ball off Woodson in the second half.
"Let me tell you how proud I am of Dominic Woodson," Pastner said. "When (Woodson) got here in early June, when that guy threw the ball at him, he would have said something and probably gone back and pushed him. His reaction is to fight. He has come such a long way. I gave him a big hug and said I was so proud of him, because he didn't react. His best reaction was no reaction, and I believe that sometimes the best reaction in life is no reaction. He kept feeding the positive dog. When you feed the positive dog, for Dominic, only good things happen."
Rounding out the double-digit players were fellow freshman Nick King, who was No. 3 for the Tigers contributing 12 points, and senior guard Geron Johnson, who added 11 points to the board.
With a team comprised of five seniors and seven freshmen, experience paired with young talent is sure to be a common theme throughout this season's rotations.
"They (the freshmen) all looked confident," Dixon said. "I don't think any of them were nervous one bit. They played well and communicated - that is something we stress everyday as a team, just talking out there on the floor. They did a lot of that."
The Tigers return to action at 7 p.m. Thursday at the FedExFourm to officially start their regular season when they take on the Governors of Austin Peay University.
"My only focus is Austin Peay," Pastner said. "Anyone that knows me knows I am only locked in onAustin Peay. I will never look ahead of a game. I never take anyone for granted. Winning is not a birthright at all, and I take every possession seriously. My expectation is that we've got to be ready for Austin Peay on Thursday."
